WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 03: Wisconsin state party chairman Reince Priebus participates in a debate between chairmanship candidates of the Republican National Committee, co-sponsored by Americans for Tax Reform and the Daily Caller, at the National Press Club January 3, 2011 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

“I just want to say that in his short time in office, his first six months on the job, Chairman Priebus has saved the Republican National Committee,” Gillespie told a gathering of College Republicans in Washington on Friday.

It’s no secret that longtime GOP operatives and donors weren’t thrilled with the way former Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele ran the organization. Priebus earlier this year defeated Steele when he ran for re-election.

“He has restored the confidence of our major donors,” Gillespie explained. “He’s re-connecting the headquarters with our state parties, especially in those critical electoral college swing states.”

“He’s taking the fight to President Obama and the Democrats in Congress,” Gillespie added. “And the RNC is once again a driving force in Republican messaging.”

In remarks to the College Republican National Committee later Friday afternoon, Priebus told the attendees, “I am here to restore the RNC, make us functional and operational and make sure that we together make Barack Obama a one-term president.”

He also got a few laughs out of the young Republicans present by pointing out that if you take the vowels out of “Reince Priebus,” it actually spells, “RNC PR BS.”